Elon Musk garnered quite a fan following before taking over Twitter for his visionary mindset. The feats he achieved with his ventures, Tesla and SpaceX, were game-changers and helped him gain respect from the masses. However, that changed ever since he took over the social media platform. His opinions have raised eyebrows now and then. Twitter’s policies on many issues since he took over the leadership have faced resistance from users. The platform is currently facing another bout of criticism after it refused to take down alleged homophobic tweets against Lewis Hamilton.
Hamilton has always been a curious nut with a special place in his heart for space and the cosmos. Therefore, when he learned about SpaceX’s space tourism program, he was justifiably excited. While he intends to wait for a few flights to complete the journey before buying himself a ticket, he once lauded Musk for his visionary thinking. It will be interesting to see if he still keeps him in such high regard since the Twitter takeover.
Lewis Hamilton fans take Elon Musk to task after controversial tweets
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There are absolutely zero doubts about Hamilton and his commitment to equality and inclusivity. He is not afraid to lend his voice to the cause, even if it could put him in a tricky situation. One such occasion arose last weekend when he wore the rainbow pride flag on his helmet during the Bahrain GP.
F1 communications strategist and LGBTQ+ rights activist Matt Bishop allegedly got some hateful comments after he lauded Lewis’ gesture at Bahrain GP. Matt reported such tweets/comments. However, the response he got from Twitter wasn’t to his liking as they refused to take them down.
As Matt posted the screenshots of his communication with the platform, many fans came in his support, taking Elon Musk to the task. Take a look at some reactions.
How can twitter say that 🤯
— Paul Brooks (@PaulbrooksAMG) March 6, 2023
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I read that abuse has at least tripled since Musk took over. There’s no one managing the tools that prevent it any more. Only the algorithms, and they’ll fail soon. Twitter is dying. It’ll be just the trolls and the far right free-speech absolutists left at some point
— Jaime Baker (@jaimebakr) March 6, 2023
One user suggested alternative social media platforms since Twitter was allegedly not serious about dealing with cases of abuse.
Twitter has been this way for a long, long time unfortunately, far before Elon took over. It will always be this way I’m afraid. When you don’t prioritize user experience, this is what happens. There are alternatives now which take abuse much more seriously. @spoutible is one
— Anna Tarkov 🏎️💨 (@AnnaTarkov) March 6, 2023
Since Musk bought twitter, he has turned it into a cesspool.
— Jim Harper (@harp2) March 6, 2023
Many felt the reason behind Twitter turning a blind eye to cases of abuse was because Musk himself endorsed such behavior.
The problem is, now @TwitterSafety is owned by @elonmusk who himself likes to troll people (e.g. calling them 'pedo' as an insult) and seems believe insulting and trolling each other is a business model, they no longer seem to want to stop any abuse (or have the staff to do it).
— Laurie Calverley (@Birax) March 6, 2023
Musk calls this freedom of speech, because he secretly agrees with this tweet. He is really really far to the right. wouldn't be surprised if he turns out fully homophobic
— Stefan McTowelie 🥦 (@BlindGuardian6) March 6, 2023
It's not looking good @elonmusk !
— Teddy Vaury (@TeddyVaury) March 6, 2023
One user demanded that Musk give personal attention to cases involving high-profile sports persons.
@elonmusk bloody reply to this will you, your so very quick to spout your wisdom or whatever random thoughts pops into that brain… be nice to see you proactively protect people on your platforms especially RESPECTED SPORTSMEN,
— Datwuboi💙💛🤍 (@Stephen02504690) March 6, 2023
I’m sorry, Matt. These comments are inexcusable but often Twitter just doesn’t care.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve reported violently racist posts targeted at Lewis and have gotten a response like that. https://t.co/9cRMmX6pcw
— Molly | LH44 (@MollyFS44) March 6, 2023
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Since Elon came out as an alt-right nutter I'm not surprised you got no result from Twitter support.
— Dan Rogers (@ShapeTheSky) March 6, 2023
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Do you think the outrage will spin Elon into action and take steps to ensure that Twitter is a safe space for people of different backgrounds? Or is the current incident too small to grab his attention?